0584 Annoyance (LARGE-CHAPTER)

Words : 2027 Updated : Mar 3rd, 2026

Starting Chapter 583 of "Harry Potter: The Golden Viper": 0584 Annoyance (LARGE-CHAPTER) The centaur elder approached Bryan and spoke to him in a friendly tone.... See what happens next!

0584 Annoyance (LARGE-CHAPTER) The centaur elder approached Bryan and spoke to him in a friendly tone. "When I was just a young foal, Dumbledore was already teaching magic in the castle. In those days, my heart was filled with curiosity about the wizarding world, a desire to know and understand the ways of your kind." He paused for a moment, his gaze turning distant and filled with a hint of nostalgia. "In my youthful impulsiveness," he continued, "I once broke into the castle grounds, which caused panic among some students who encountered me there. They attacked me, but it was Dumbledore who intervened, and sent me safely back to the tribe." A small, sad smile appeared across his face and his eyes were filled with a deep respect and admiration. "Like Hagrid, Dumbledore is one of the few humans who have treated magical creatures with true equality and understanding." Bryan was very clear about why this old centaur brought up Dumbledore. He nodded to the centaur elder and smiled apologetically. "I apologize for the abruptness of our meeting, Elder, But I believe that the matter I wish to discuss with you is one that requires the utmost discretion and confidentiality." Horn, his eyes flickering with a sudden hint of wariness, nodded his head in a gesture of acceptance. "You may call me Horn, Mr. Watson," he said, his voice filled with a quiet seriousness. "Is there any confusion or uncertainty that I can help to clarify for you." Bryan looked around. The empty hall had not a single chair, nor even a deity to worship. So, under Horn's wary gaze, Bryan took out his wand, waved it at the empty space, and two cushions, one large and one small, appeared in the gloomy air. "Let's sit and talk—" Bryan gestured invitingly to Horn, and he himself took the lead, sitting cross-legged on the cushion. Horn, after a moment's hesitation, knelt down upon the larger cushion. Bryan, his eyes flickering toward the intricate murals on the domed ceiling of the temple, pointed to the images with a finger. "Before we begin our discussion," Bryan said, "I would like to know more about these murals. You mentioned earlier that they depict a scene from the legendary island of Avalon..." Horn already regretted it a little. Blurting out 'Avalon Island' was a completely unguarded subconscious reaction, but the words had been spoken, and there was no way to unsay them now. "Indeed, Mr. Watson," Horn had lived in this temple for nearly half a century. Even with his eyes closed, he could clearly remember every detail of the murals on the domed ceiling of the temple. He said in a heavy, hoarse voice: "It is no surprise that the tale of Avalon Island has captured your interest, as it has become a legend in the myths and stories of both wizards and Muggles. Many among your kind even doubt its very existence, seeing it as nothing more than a fanciful tale. But we centaurs know the truth of it, as our ancestors once called that fabled isle their home." "Is that so—" Contrary to Horn's expectations, Bryan did not show a particularly surprised expression, but only asked nonchalantly: "I thought you migrated to this forest only after the founding of Hogwarts. In the myths of wizards and Muggles, Avalon Island appeared thousands of years ago. In other words, you have lived here for a much longer time than Hogwarts has existed. Thousands of years, if the tales are true. It is a remarkable thing, to have such deep roots in a place. So, Horn, why did you migrate here? Why didn't your ancestors continue to live there?" "I'm sorry, Mr. Watson—" Horn fell silent again for a moment before shaking his head and saying in a low voice: "The centaurs have lost the records of this history. For more than a thousand years, this forest has not always been peaceful. We have also experienced many wars, and many records have disappeared in the flames of war." Lying to Bryan was not a simple matter, but Bryan did not expose Horn's lies. Instead, he nodded thoughtfully. "It is the way of things. Over the course of a thousand years, how many truths and secrets have been lost, buried beneath the weight of time and the tides of history? But tell me, Horn, what else do you know of this mythical island? What other tales have survived the long centuries to be passed down among your people?" "Very little, Mr. Watson—" Seeing that Bryan Watson did not pursue the matter, Horn secretly breathed a sigh of relief. "I only know that Avalon Island was a paradise. When it still existed in this world, many creatures lived on the island. There was no division of race or kind, no war or discrimination, no hunger or exploitation. Magical creatures, humans, and nature coexisted harmoniously, jointly exploring the mysteries of nature—" In today's wizarding world, magical creatures are confined, slaughtered, and raised by wizards. Compared to the present, if life on Avalon Island was truly that wonderful, it was no wonder Horn felt a newfound longing. "I see—" Bryan nodded. His face was hidden in the shadow cast by a beam, so Horn could not see his expression. But the next casual remark from this young and powerful wizard made the blood in Horn's old body rush rapidly through his veins: "You still miss your ancestors' time on Avalon Island. So, out of sympathy for the Druids, who are also remnants of Avalon, you are willing to shelter them?" The sudden shock almost made Horn jump up from the cushion, but the thunderous aura emanating from Watson's seemingly frail body, now seated there, bound Horn in place, and he was unable to move. "The centaurs and the wizards of Hogwarts have been neighbors for a thousand years. Given the depth and duration of our relationship, I would have thought that your people would have seen fit to inform us of such a significant decision." Bryan's calm tone sent a chill through Horn. "Or, in the eyes of the centaurs, are all wizards a bunch of greedy and despicable fellows who like to use their magic to hurt their own kind?" The patterns looked simple, but when drawn, they left imprints across many dimensions of space. The patterns before them were merely projections of those imprints in the real world. The power of ancient magic runes was not to be underestimated. A violent disassembly might directly blast the shrine above their head. Therefore, Bryan stepped aside from the door and glanced at Horn. The old centaur's expression changed. He was clearly still very reluctant, but at his age, he had long understood these situations. "I plead you to not destroy anything inside—" After a long sigh, Horn stepped forward and pressed his old palm against the door. The wooden door let out a metallic clang, accompanied by a flash of faint light. The world beyond the door appeared before Bryan's eyes. The solemn atmosphere that greeted him made Bryan involuntarily narrow his eyes. A few seconds later, he opened his eyes and gazed at the room beyond the door, showing a hint of surprise. Behind the door was a room about the same size as the Chamber of Secrets. The torches on the four walls automatically ignited upon sensing someone opening the door. The bright golden flames illuminated the spacious room in great detail. Bryan faced several hundred stone centaur sculptures. Each sculpture had a tall and sturdy figure, looking lifelike. They held rust-stained long spears or nearly decayed bows, each with a different expression. Some glared with wide eyes, some looked ahead with determination. In any case, they all possessed an extraordinary bearing. "This is—" "Centaurs are not like wizards who revere the tradition of being deeply buried underground after death. We come from nature, so we should also return to nature after death," Horn gazed at these sculptures and said in a respectful tone, "But for memorial, we will take their weapons from when they were alive and record their living appearance with sculptures. Only heroes are worthy of such treatment. They are all warriors who helped the tribe overcome hardships!" Bryan gave a slight nod. "I understand. This is the centaurs' 'Hall of Valor." Bryan had no special feelings towards these heroic centaurs, but he roughly understood the significance of this place to the centaurs. After entering, Bryan didn't pass through the centaur sculptures. Instead, he walked through the solemn Hall of Valor along the gaps beside the walls and arrived at another door on the opposite side of the hall. Such behavior undoubtedly made Horn feel a bit of goodwill towards this powerful wizard of the human world. Therefore, when facing the second sealed wooden door, he took the initiative to open it without waiting for Bryan's gaze to signal it. The second room still brought Bryan some shock. This was also an enormous stone chamber. The room was empty, with the four walls covered in stone tablets each about two feet large. Every stone tablet was engraved with different star charts, looking extremely mysterious. 'If Aurora saw this, she would probably be very excited.' A faint thought flashed through Bryan's mind. He took a cursory glance at the star charts on these stone tablets as he rapidly advanced. But suddenly, Bryan's footsteps stopped in a spot near the back of the room— Bryan's astronomical knowledge was average, limited to common sense. Therefore, he wasn't very interested in these star charts. It was just, he had looked at hundreds of stone tablets along the way, yet he wasn't familiar with a single star chart recorded on them. This made him feel somewhat amazed— "The positions of planetary movement aren't recorded on these stone tablets?" Bryan abruptly asked. Horn didn't expect Bryan to discover this point. He said in surprise, "You are correct, Mr. Watson. What is recorded on these stone tablets are not planetary positions, but texts—" "Text?" Bryan's brows twitched. He said in a slightly admiring tone, "The centaurs created a unique text i.e. language using star charts? This is amazing." Bryan didn't continue looking. Instead, he arrived at a stone wall occupying the entire wall beside the third wooden door on the opposite side of the room. The stone wall didn't record anything with the special text like the other stone tablets in the room. Rather, it depicted a simple line drawing—on the desolate wilderness, countless creatures gathered together. They didn't engage in war, but prostrated themselves together on the earth to worship the sky. In the sky above was an irregular enclosed shape like a vortex with its interior filled with many chaotic lines seeming to represent 'wind'. It resembled the outline of a jellyfish swimming in water! Bryan deeply gazed at this stone drawing; his face expressionless but his heart stirred with emotions. He indeed didn't expect that one day he would see a similar drawing elsewhere again. "What is this?" Even though his mind was tumultuous, Bryan still asked in a calm and unhurried manner. Horn seemed to have anticipated Watson's question long ago. He wasn't surprised, but also looked at the pattern on the stone wall with a complicated gaze. "Wizards have long since lost the records of that period of history, Mr. Watson. But we centaurs... our ancestors bore witness to that primordial event and passed down the story of that fateful moment from generation to generation, enshrining it in our legends and our myths, even weaving it into the very stars themselves." Facing the deep and unfathomable gaze Bryan Watson casted over him, the centaur elder Horn gestured to the mural before them and said solemnly, "It is a depiction of the moment when magic first surged into our world, a moment lost to the mists of time, forgotten by all but a handful of the oldest and wisest among us." ******************************* For More /FicFrenzy

0584 Annoyance (LARGE-CHAPTER)

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